


Stranded

by CrescentDream24, Sandmann



Series: Leonard McCoy x Reader December [5]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Female Reader, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-11
Updated: 2020-12-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:35:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27997620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrescentDream24/pseuds/CrescentDream24, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sandmann/pseuds/Sandmann
Summary: You lose contact with the Enterprise while on a solo away mission and have to battle against the elements of a foreign planet in the hopes of getting on the ship again.
Relationships: Leonard "Bones" McCoy/Reader
Series: Leonard McCoy x Reader December [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2033593
Comments: 28
Kudos: 68





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Here we are for another installment of the Reader/McCoy December series! We’re posting multi-chapter one-shots this entire month, one chapter a day to “unwrap”...just like an advent calendar! You can choose to follow along with the stories every day or wait for an entire story to be posted before reading. We hope you like this one!  
> Comments and kudos are much appreciated and always enjoyed!  
> CrescentDream24 & Sandmann

“Enterprise?” There was a loud crackling sound coming out of your communicator, accompanied by a sharp whine of static that made you cringe. “Do you copy?”

Nothing.

You had tried to contact the ship for the past twenty minutes with no luck. Sitting on a flat rock nearby you worked the dials of the communication device in annoyance, trying everything you could think of to get it to work. But all you were met with was more static.

You pushed down the sudden urge to smash the communicator against the rock you were sitting on. Letting your frustration get the best of you would not do anything to help your situation. You closed your eyes, deeply inhaling and exhaling for a moment before opening them again. It didn’t do much to calm you.

You tried again for another half hour to hail the Enterprise, to no avail. You finally stood up, pacing around a bit to take in your surroundings and noticed that the sun had begun to set. This planet received much less sunlight than Earth did, so already the shadow of night was starting to descend all around you, much quicker than you would have anticipated.

Great. That was just freaking great.

Stuck on this barren shithole of a planet with no means to contact the Enterprise, nothing but your phaser and your uniform on you. You wished you had a coat, at least. It was starting to get cold, and you recalled that this planet’s temperature dropped dramatically during nightfall. 

“It’s going to be a _“quick”_ mission, they said,” you muttered out loud to the rocks as you kicked at the dark orange dirt with the toe of your boot. “Beam down, get the samples, beam back up again.”

Until it wasn’t.

Annoyed, you began to scan your surroundings for a good place to spend the night.

You shivered involuntarily as you sensed the wind pick up when the sun reached the horizon on its fast descent. It seemed as if you’d be spending at least a few more hours down on this planet, and if you wanted to spend them comfortably, you had to start looking for some type of shelter from the elements.

You brought your hand up to your brow, shielding your eyes from the wind as you scanned the horizon for a possible hide-out. 

If you could make it down the slope on the far end of the plain, you might be able to find decent shelter amongst the rocks that were spread out in the distance like giant orange pebbles.

You sighed as the air blew around your ears, evolving from a strong breeze to a steady wind, leaving goosebumps across your exposed skin. Staying up here would do you no good. You had to move.

You grabbed up the useless communicator and attached it to your belt as you started a brisk walk, still grumbling to yourself.

By the time you reached the slope, the wind was still steady and you had trouble visualizing the natural path that wound down towards the rocks due to the darkness. With bated breath, you took the first cautious step down the gravelly trail, going as slow as you could to keep your footing.

The sun was gone completely now and you had only the dim light from the planet’s two moons overhead to work with. One slow step after the next, you let your feet guide you over the uneven surface as the wind continued to whip its way across your body, forcing you to bend lower as to shield your vision from the dirt being kicked up into the air like big orange clouds.

You were almost halfway down the slope when one of the strongest gusts of wind you’d ever felt in your life caught you and threw you out of balance. The grit underneath your feet shifted and you tried to catch your fall, but it was too late and you crashed down the rest of the slope in the darkness of the foreign planet.

***

Jim stood in the transporter room next to his chief engineer and frowned at the sight of the instruments in front of them. They had lost contact with you about half an hour ago and had not yet been able to re-establish any sort of communication.

“Why can’t we just beam her back up, Scotty?”

“The problem is that I canna locate the lass, Captain. Somethin’ in the atmosphere of this planet is interferin’ with our sensors…” The chief engineer plotted away at the controls, shaking his head as he did so. “Plus, it looks like a storm’s about to blow in, and that’s only servin’ to make the interference worse.”

Jim muttered a curse under his breath and looked around the room as he ran a hand down his jaw, trying to formulate some sort of plan. He didn’t believe in giving up. Especially when it came to members of his crew. “Keep trying, Scotty. Sooner or later we should be able to get through. I’m sure she’s trying just as hard to hail us.”

He should not have sent you planet-side all by yourself, no matter how many times you had assured him that it wouldn’t bother you. He could kick himself for not following protocol, against his better judgment.

The doors to the transporter room whooshed open and the chief medical officer strode in looking stern. “Jim, we got those samples yet? I need the toxin from those plants.”

Leonard stood next to the captain, urgency coloring his words as he continued. "There're five crewmen in my med bay right now about to claw their skin off completely. The rash is spreadin’ quicker than I’ve ever seen it.”

“We’re working on it, Bones.” Jim gave him a pointed look. “We sent a crewmember down, but we’re having trouble hailing her. Scotty’s doing all he can, but we’ll just have to wait.”

Leonard McCoy’s eyebrow shot up as his eyes bounced back and forth between Scotty and Jim in disbelief. “You mean you can’t beam ‘em back? Both of their communicators stopped working?”

Jim looked away, going to stand next to the transport console Scotty was currently stationed at. He crossed his arms in front of him, trying to sidestep another wave of guilt as he answered the doctor.

“There’s only one crew member. It was a quick retrieval of environmental samples on a previously charted planet with no signs of intelligent life. There was no need for an entire landing party.”

Leonard regarded the captain with a stunned expression. “What? You....you sent someone down alone? My god, Jim.” His eyes were wide as he gestured out toward the room. “Even if you were beaming ‘em down to the most peaceful planet in the known universe, you still send down at least one security officer. Just what in the hell were you thinkin’?”

“Enough, Bones.” Jim shot him a look that meant business. “I’m not debating this command decision with you. Right now, our focus is getting her back on this ship.” He glanced back at Scotty over his shoulder. “Anything?”

“Nope. Sorry, Captain. I got nothin’ yet.” Scotty shook his head in dismay as he leaned back in his chair.

Leonard fought to bite back his emotions at the magnitude of the captain’s error, but the regret he saw in his friend’s eyes stopped him.

Finally, he swallowed and managed to get out something civil. “Well, shouldn’t you at least send a security officer down there to scout the area for the crewman? Who did you send down there, anyway?”

It was Jim’s turn to swallow. “We can’t send down anyone else--the transporter’s all jammed up. Nothing is getting through to the planet’s surface. Even if we _could_ get in touch with her, we wouldn’t be able to pull her back. At least not right now.”

The medical officer mulled over Jim’s answer, not missing the fact that he had left out one important detail. “Who did you send down?” he repeated.

He saw Jim’s nostrils flare as he gave a heavy exhale. “I sent down the person most qualified in the field of biology. She was the one the ship’s computer recommended based on her credentials.” 

Leonard took a step closer, feeling his heart pull ever so slightly as realization dawned on him. It felt as if all the air had been sucked out of the cabin and Scotty nervously shifted in his chair at the unmistakable tension.

“Who, Jim?”

“It’s Y/N.” Jim stared him down, his stance unflappable. “She was the most qualified candidate.”

The color drained from Leonard’s face as he stared unblinkingly at the captain, a cold trickle of dread sliding down his spine.


	2. Chapter 2

When you opened your eyes again, you saw nothing but black and for one harrowing moment, you thought you had gone completely blind. But slowly, your eyes eventually focused and you were able to see the two moons in the sky along with a smattering of stars.

You let out a shaky breath of relief as you continued to lay flat on your back, trying to get a bearing on your surroundings. You remembered walking down the slope towards the outcropping of rocks, and how you lost your balance in the strong gust of wind. After that, all memories were hazy.

You went to go sit up and were instantly met with a wave of nausea. Your head was pounding, more-so on the right side just above your ear. You carefully eased back down to lay flat again, cautiously lifting a hand to your head. When it pulled away you could see the glint of blood on your fingers, and you realized you must have hit your head off one of the rocks nearby. You probably had a concussion.

This day just kept getting better and better. The wind had picked up even more by now--your hands were ice cold, as was your face, and you began to shiver. You had to get to the rocks and find shelter from the bone-chilling wind.  
Carefully you tried to sit up again, taking your time and slowly rising on your feet with shaky legs.  
Another more powerful wave of nausea crashed over you, making you throw up instantly as you stumbled and fought to stay upright. You wiped your mouth with the sleeve of your uniform as you waited on unsteady legs for your stomach to unclench.

You looked back up at the slope you just crashed down from and laughed humorlessly. At least there was one up-side to it all: you didn’t have to continue your descent since you already found yourself on level with the rocks you had tried to reach.

Cautiously as not to trip and fall again, you made your way through the ever-increasing wind storm over to a pile of larger orange rocks, hoping they would act as a sort of wind-break for you. You tried to find a spot where the wind didn’t hit so hard and huddled up against the stone, trying to ignore the throbbing headache and nausea that was still churning in your stomach. You wrapped your arms tightly around your knees which you had pulled close to your body, trying to keep yourself warm, pushing your worst fears out of your head all the while.

Why the hell had you offered to beam down all alone?

Leonard was going to kill you.

***

“I’ll take the next shift.”

Jim furrowed his brow at his chief medical officer, the expression in his blue eyes clearly conveying his doubt. “And how are you going to do that? Don’t you have a Medbay full of patients ready to tear their skin off?”

“My team’s got it covered.” Leonard stared back at the captain, not willing to back down. “Dr. M’Benga is supervising. If anything happens that they can’t handle, they’ll come for me.” He stood in front of the transporter console where Jim currently sat, waiting for him to give up the seat. 

Jim exhaled, debating in his head for a moment before finally vacating the chair. “Fine. Try to hail her for another two hours. I’ll send Scotty in here to relieve you.”

He was about to step aside so Leonard could take over, but he paused and looked his friend in the eye first.

“We’ll find her, Bones.”

Dr. McCoy patted him on the shoulder as he moved to take position at the console. “I know.”

As he watched the doors slid shut on the captain’s retreating form, he knew his friend would do everything in his power to find you. Jim Kirk was the best captain in the fleet, something he’d proved dozens of times over. What Leonard didn’t know was whether or not he would ultimately be successful this time. And that scared him to death.

He had been burning an ulcer in his stomach pacing the Medbay for the last couple of hours, finally deciding that he had to do something other than worry.

He wanted to help.

And that’s why he was there in the transporter room now, seated at the comm unit built into the transport console. He needed to hear your voice again, to know that you were alright down on that strange planet alone. He knew you could take care of yourself, but there was only so much a person could do against the elements with limited materials.

He gently tweaked the hailing dials, bringing the communication console to life and sending down a call on your frequency.

“Enterprise to Y/N. Come in, Y/N.”

He waited, unaware that he was holding his breath until he was forced to let it out from lack of oxygen.

He was met with nothing but static. He tried again with the same result.

“Enterprise to Y/N, come in.”

Boosting the signal, he tried a few times more, each time his voice growing louder and more urgent.

“Y/N? Goddamnit, come in, Y/N!” Still nothing.

He slapped his hand on the console, the worry that had been twisting within him making his temper flare even easier than it already did. He stopped trying to hail for a moment, sitting forward and pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to calm down.

He thought back to the last time he’d seen you. He’d been on his way to the med bay in a hurry, racking his brain for answers to the ominous rash that had spread to multiple crew members over the last day and a half. He was so lost in thought that he would have motored right past you if you hadn’t said something.

“Len, hey!” You had been going the opposite direction, on the way to the briefing room when he passed you. Your eyes had lit up and you instantly went over to him, placing a hand on his arm.

“What’s wrong?” you asked, your eyes searching his and finding the multitude of worry and confusion he held there.

“I wish I knew. There’s this rash speadin’ around to members of the crew and I need to find the antidote yesterday. It’s movin’ so fast, and I gotta wait for the lab results before I go ahead with anything.” His voice was edged with annoyance and you’d given his upper arm a reassuring squeeze.

“It’ll be alright. You’ll figure it out, you always do.” You flashed him a warm smile then, something that never failed to soothe him. You were both in a rush and didn’t have much time to talk, so you had let go of his arm as if to leave. But before you did, you briefly looked both ways to make sure the hallway was deserted and moved in to give him a light kiss.

“I’ll see you in my quarters tonight?” You murmured the question against his lips.

“Of course,” he’d agreed as you pulled away, and after sharing a look of promise you both began heading back down the hall in opposite directions to the duties that awaited.

Leonard sighed aloud as he continued to stare down at the console, willing your voice to come over the comm spontaneously. He finally keyed up the unit and tried again, this time his words soft and pleading as he called out for you.

“Y/N? Come in, darlin’. I know you’re out there.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still no contact... 
> 
> As always: we'd love to be let in on your thoughts!  
> We'll post the next chapter tomorrow!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter turned out a little longer...

The cold was really starting to get to you now. Your fingertips were numb, your limbs covered in goosebumps as you continued to shiver involuntarily. You couldn’t feel your nose or your ears at all, and your toes were a distant memory.

You were sitting propped up in a fetal position with the communicator balanced in your lap, chin to your chest as you buried your face in your knees that you gripped with both hands. The large rocks you were leaning against had provided some amount of shelter against the harsh wind, but not as much as you’d hoped. This planet had cooled off considerably after the sun had gone down, and your concern for your safety was steadily mounting.

The sting from your head wound was growing stronger too, and the dull throbbing within your skull made it difficult to concentrate on anything. When you’d initially regained consciousness, you didn’t think your injury was too severe—a knock to the head that would probably require stitches and a slight concussion, but nothing more. Now however, the adrenaline was wearing away from your body and you realized your injury was actually pretty serious. You definitely had a concussion, and the blood had continued to trickle down from the head wound making the side of your face sticky and wet. Your palms were heavily scraped from your attempt at bracing your fall against the rocks, and your eyes were having trouble focusing. You tried to keep your emotions in check, holding the communicator in one hand now as you continued to hail the ship like you’d done for the past four hours. It had been a total of six hours since you’d been stranded here, and you hoped it wouldn’t be much more.

“Hello? Enterprise? Come in.” The words were automatic, you didn’t even need to think about them anymore. You were used to the static whine by now too, expecting nothing else. You tried to keep your teeth from chattering as you hailed the ship yet again.

“Come in, Enterprise.” Still no luck.

You suddenly had the overwhelming urge to close your eyes, and you fought against it immediately. If there was one thing you knew, it was that going to sleep with a serious concussion was a bad idea. You remembered someone warning you against it during your Starfleet training. Or had Leonard told you?

You had tried not to give him much thought while being stranded down here, knowing it would only make you more desperate to contact the ship. But you couldn’t help it now.

Your imagination took over as you battled to keep your eyes open, and a strong desire to be wrapped up in his arms overcame you. You wanted to be back in his quarters on the ship, warm and safe. You could picture the soft lights of his cabin, a candle flickering on the dining table and the smell of food as it warmed in the oven. Leonard would probably whisper words of comfort in your ear, sling a thick blanket over your shoulders and lead you to the couch to relax. He would make you a hot drink in a large mug that you could cradle in your hands, serving to warm you and calm you with its soothing aroma. He’d patch up your head with the gentle touch he was famous for, and he’d scold you for not being more careful. You would give anything to hear one of those lectures right now.

Your eyes slowly drifted closed, but you were unaware of it as you slid deeper into the comforting daydream. Exhaustion took its hold and you were asleep in seconds, the hand that was holding the communicator losing its grip and sending the device tumbling down from your lap and onto the dirt beside you.

The wind that had been whipping around you for hours gradually lost some of its bite, dulling down for a moment as you continued to sleep. It hadn’t gone away completely, but the clouds of orange dirt and debris that had been kicked up in the air during the more powerful part of the storm were finally allowed to dissipate somewhat.

“Y/N? Come in Y/N. This is Enterprise. This is Leonard.”

The message was loaded with static, but unmistakable. It fell on deaf ears though and you continued to breathe in and out evenly with your eyes shut, chin still tucked into your knees.

“Come on, sweetheart. I need to hear your voice. Answer me please.”

Your mind was swimming in a delightful dream now, a dream where you were safe and Leonard was taking care of you as you’d imagined before. The throbbing in your head was gone, and you were lighter than air. You couldn’t see him, but you knew Leonard was close, watching over you. Finally, you heard his voice, but it was pained and garbled. You wondered to yourself what was wrong. You were both in his quarters, safe and sound. There was nothing to be afraid of, all was as it should be. But his voice was pleading with you and it wouldn’t stop. He wanted something.

You stirred, and his voice grew louder. It was louder and yet it seemed to be coming from far away. Your dream was beginning to falter, the details became muddled and you were having trouble grasping at them. The ache in your skull returned with full force, so much force that it brought up a well of tears and you cried out in pain, opening your eyes to the strange planet once again.

You gasped as all your senses returned. You could feel the wind and see the murky dust clouds lingering in the air around you. Your head was nothing but a throbbing mass of pain, and it felt thick and heavy like a ball of wet cotton. Your eyes were blurred over with tears, and you tried to take deep inhales to keep you grounded. You couldn’t let yourself fall asleep again. It was much too dangerous. 

“Answer me, darlin’. Answer me.”

You froze, unsure if the voice was only a figment of your imagination. You looked down, but your lap was empty and you tried to remember where in the hell you put the communicator.

“Come in, Y/N. Come in.”

That was definitely real. A shot of adrenaline lit its way through your nerve endings and you were instantly more alert. Your eyes went wide as you shifted around, frantically looking for the communicator and finally spotting it on the dirt next to you. You lunged for it, clawing it back towards you and blinking rapidly to try and keep your focus. Your mind was a haze and you found even simple tasks like keeping your eyes trained on an object to be rather difficult.

Carefully, you flipped open the communicator as quickly as you could, the numbness in your fingers making you rather clumsy. You keyed up the unit and blurted out the first words that came to mind.

“Leonard! Come in, come in. I hear you! I hear you!”

It barely took a second for the reply. “Y/N?! Thank god. Where are you?”

You scanned your surroundings, trying to decide how to describe your current situation. “I’m.....a little ways away from the drop-off point. Not very far. I found some shelter in the rocks from the wind storm. It seems to have died down a bit.” You found your tongue to work ponderously, making the simple act of forming words not as easy as it should be.

Even as you spoke, you could feel the wind start to kick up again, and you fervently wished that it wouldn’t.

“How are you? Are you hurt?” His voice was tight with worry.

You blinked again, trying to process his question as a wave of nausea suddenly rolled up through your stomach out of nowhere. “I’m, uh....I’m alright. I took a fall, but it’s not too bad. I hit my head …..and it hurts.” You winced, annoyed that you were having trouble finding the words to describe your symptoms accurately.

“Can you beam me up now?” You added, and your tone resembled that of a child begging for someone to take them home. 

“We can’t right now darlin’.” His tone was apologetic. “The wind storm kicked up so much damn debris that we’re having a hard time lockin’ on your signal. But it’s died down a bit now, and Scotty is trying to find your co-ordinates. Stay in one spot if you can, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Can you tell me what you’re feelin’? Are you sick?” His voice was gentle, and even though he was speaking to you from orbit in space overhead, it seemed like he was here on the planet beside you. You tried hard to concentrate on his questions and to give him helpful answers.

“Yeah, I feel like I’m gonna throw up. I can’t....think very well. My mind is really cloudy. And my head is bleeding.”

His tone grew a bit more urgent, but he kept his words smooth as not to worry you. “That’s rough, sweetheart. I want you to try and stay awake for me, okay? It’s important that you don’t fall asleep. Sounds like you have a concussion. Are you still bleedin’ where you hit your head?”

You raised a hand up to the wound and gently prodded it with your fingertip. You winced and it came back bloody. But the blood was a dark red, almost brown hue and it felt dry and flaky.

“I think it stopped.”

“Well, that’s a good sign. You just have to hold in a bit longer and we’ll beam you right back up here.”

You nodded even though you knew he couldn’t see you. The wind was beginning to whip around your exposed skin more forcefully now, and you shivered. “It’s real cold here, Len. The wind’s starting up again.”

“You have your phaser with you still?”

You grazed your hand along the side of your uniform, surprised when it closed on the cool metal of the weapon. “Yes, I do. I just assumed I lost it after my fall.”

“I want you to fire it at some of the rocks that are nearby. Not too close. Keep firing at ‘em and they should heat up. It won’t be much, but hopefully, it’s enough to help. Do you see any rocks close by?”

“Yup. Not lacking in those, that’s for sure.” You carefully set the communicator in your lap as you took up the phaser, choosing a clump of rocks a couple of feet past where you were sitting. You aimed and fired for a solid minute, watching the rock as it began to softly glow with heat.

“Y/N, are you still with me?” Leonard’s voice came out of your lap. You put the phaser securely back in its holster before reaching for the communicator again.   
“Yeah, I’m still here. Got the rock glowing. I’ll give it a little time to cool down before I go and grab it.”  
“Good call. When you get up I want you to take it slow, do you hear me?” You nodded and regretted the movement instantly. Your throbbing head protested and sanctioned the motion promptly with another sharp peak of pain, making you hiss out a breath between your teeth.

“Y/N, can you still hear me?”

You exhaled slow, trying to get through the worst of the pain while Leonard’s voice was reduced to mere background noise and you were unable to answer.

“Y/N? Sweetheart, I need you to talk to me!”

It took you a few more moments to regain control over your senses before your cold fingers wrapped themselves around the communicator again, shakily bringing it up closer to your mouth.

“Okay,” was all you were able to bring out.

“Okay,” Leonard sounded relieved. “You’re doin’ great. Just keep talkin’ to me, anything that comes to mind. You think you can do that?”

“I’ll hold you to that once I’m back on the ship,” you muttered weakly.

“I bet you will!” You could hear him chuckling lightly over the comm and the sound made you miss him even more.

“It’s s-so cold here, Len. And I’m so t-tired.” You were shivering and it was evident in your voice.

“I know you are, Y/N. You think you can get that rock you heated up now?”

The two small moons of the foreign planet drenched the landscape in soft light, barely bright enough for you to see as far as a few feet, but when you looked up you could make out that the rock in question was not glowing red anymore.

“Yes, I think so.” You’d probably need both hands to get the stone back to your shelter. “I’ll leave the communicator here, I’ll be right back.”

“All right, just take it slow. You’ll probably feel dizzy once you get up.”

You placed the communicator carefully on the dirt next to you, then began to push yourself upright. Your legs were numb and cold, almost as if they didn’t belong to you. As Leonard had predicted, you felt dizzy almost instantly and you had to reach out for the rock next to you to steady yourself.

Your legs wobbled and the world would not stop spinning. An unstoppable wave of nausea made your stomach clench again, and despite the throbbing protest of your aching head you quickly bent over and threw up over an outcropping of rock.

Panting heavily from the effort, you wiped your mouth clean with the sleeve of your uniform and tried to refocus. A couple breaths later you were finally able to take a tentative step forward. The rock was only a couple of feet away, but it took you quite a while to cross that distance. The wind was strong again and you had to blink away the sand and alien dirt that kicked up around you until eventually, you reached the rock you were after.

You bent forward gingerly, trying to move your head as little as possible, and you were glad to find its surface pleasantly warm under your fingers. You scooped it up and slowly returned to the spot you had found shelter in before.  
Your heart was beating fast and heavy in your chest when you sat back down again. You placed the warm rock in your lap, hugging it with your arms, attempting to get as much warmth off it as possible.

You closed your eyes and tried to concentrate on the heat the stone emanated, trying to slow your breathing down, holding onto it like a lifeline.

It was not much --you still felt the cold in your bones with the wind whirling around you, but at least now you had something to hold on to. There was still the lingering taste of bile in your mouth; when you swallowed your throat hurt from all the dust you had inhaled, and when you licked your lips they were brittle and dry.

You wanted to pick up the communicator and talk to Leonard, but you were so weak and dizzy, and it was hard for you to form a straight thought right now.

You heard Leonard’s voice coming through the communicator next to you, but it got harder and harder to make sense of his words. They started to blur together into an incomprehensible tangle, but the underlying melody of his Southern drawl in a way still made you feel taken care of.

Against your better judgment, you began to drift off again, allowing your thoughts to wander to a different place, a place where you hadn’t a worry in the world.

As you continued to flee reality farther into the depths of your mind, you became unaware of what was happening around you. You didn’t hear the change in Leonard’s tone when desperation took over and he frantically tried to get your attention back, tried to get you to answer him.

And you didn’t feel the familiar tingling that accompanied the golden light of the transporter beam when it finally enwrapped your body half an hour later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally Reader is on her way back to the Enterprise...
> 
> We'll be back with the final chapter tomorrow!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The final chapter of the story!

You rematerialized in the transporter room of the Enterprise--still in the hunched position on the ground, the rock you had been holding onto for dear life falling out of your lap and clattering on the transporter pad.  
The Captain and Scotty lurched forward, but Leonard was next to you in no time, his hand instantly moving to your neck to check for a pulse.

A wave of relief flooded him when he found your heart was still beating. Your skin under his fingertips felt cold, and he knew he had to get you warmed up at once. His trained eyes had registered the head wound you had described to him, the abrasions on your hands, and the signs of dehydration your body was already showing.

After sweeping his handheld tricorder over you once to confirm the absence of broken bones, he scooped you up carefully, not trusting anyone else with your care, and marched off to the med bay, your limp body weighing heavy in his arms.

***

When you finally woke up, it didn’t take you long to realize you were not on the cold and windy planet anymore, but back safe and secure on the Enterprise.

As quickly as your heart soared at the thought of being rescued, it did a nose-dive when it realized what section of the ship you were currently in. You took in the distinctive smell of the Medbay, all the medical supplies crowding the shelves, and the various instruments sitting beside your bed. You didn't like being in Medbay. At all.

As a child, you had spent far too much time in and out of hospitals, had endured too many procedures that you could hardly stand being in any medical facility, even now, so many years later.

Funny enough you ended up dating a doctor.

At least that had made going through the mandatory physical exams every year a bit easier, but you still tried to avoid the Medbay whenever you could.  
You glanced around again and found yourself all alone, laying on a biobed with your arm attached to an IV drip. The privacy curtains were pulled closed, and the monitors above your bed displayed the readings with a methodical beep corresponding with your heart rate.

The steady rhythm did nothing to calm you, however, and you sensed the all-too-familiar panic within you rise as the flight mode took over. You had to get out of here.

As you began to wrestle yourself out of the blanket you had been tucked into firmly, the monitors started to give off a warning alarm, alerting the fact that your heart rate had reached a critical point. You ignored the noise and swung your legs out of bed, feeling slightly dizzy and regretting the loss of the warm cover. You began to shiver-- wearing nothing but the Medbay-issued nightgown didn’t help.

You started to frantically pull at the IV line that was attached to the back of your hand, your palms getting sweaty and your breathing becoming more ragged. The throbbing at your temples was readily apparent and you knew you were freaking out, going absolutely mental. But medical facilities never failed to bring out the worst in you, making all your worst fears spring to mind as if they were almost a certainty.

You heard quickened footsteps just outside of the privacy curtain, and with one hand still fumbling with the IV line you looked up, fully prepared to run.

“Woah there, easy now!” Leonard’s voice usually had a calming effect on you, but you were too worked up to let it sink through.

With one final pull, you had the IV cannula removed from your vein and you jumped to your feet, not caring about the blood that began to trickle out of the puncture site and down your hand.  
Leonard reached for a compress and was next to you immediately, applying pressure to your hand as he gently but firmly pushed you to sit back on the biobed.

“You need to calm down, darlin’. You’re all safe here.” You looked up at his words and found hazel eyes staring back at you in concern.

“Len!” you pleaded. “You need to get me out of here, please! I can’t take it. I can’t do this. Not again, I just....” You felt the panic amplify tenfold when you saw one of the nurses who had accompanied Leonard hand him a hypospray.

“No!” You shook your head vehemently and moved away from Leonard. “Don’t drug me, Len. Please, don’t!” Your voice was quivering at this point, and you shivered head-to-toe due to the cold air you were exposed to and the weakness of your still-recovering body.

Leonard placed the hypospray on your nightstand silently, dismissing the nurse with his hand, and carefully sat down next to you on the bed.  
When he spoke again his voice was low and calm, as if he were talking to a scared, injured animal.

“All right, no meds.” He reached over for a Band-Aid and lightly took your bleeding hand, placing it on his knee as he dabbed away the blood and sealed the wound. “But you need to get back into bed, no arguments. You were severely hypothermic when we got you back last night. Not to mention the concussion.”

“Last night?” Your breathing had returned to a reasonably normal tempo, although your heart was still racing. The last thing you could remember before waking up here was curling yourself around the warm piece of rock on the planet below and hearing Leonard’s voice through the comm system.

“Yes, last night,” Leonard nodded as he studied your pupils for any adverse reaction. “Do you remember talkin’ to me at all?”  
You smoothed your hand over your knee in thought. “I shot at the stone like you told me to.”

Leonard moved a little closer and placed his wonderfully warm hand lightly on your back before giving you a smile. “You did! But then you stopped answerin’ me.”

He swallowed before continuing. “Finally, Scotty was able to lock onto your coordinates and beamed you back on board. We would’ve done it sooner but there was just too much interference.”  
His hand began to draw comforting circles on your back now. “You need to get some more rest, stay warm, and let your concussion heal.”

You felt much calmer now, although still somewhat on edge. His presence had done wonders but you still couldn’t forget where you were.

“Okay,” you finally said. “But, please, not here.” You took in a deep breath. He knew your history and why you despised hospitals so much, so you hoped he would understand what you were asking. “I’ll go to my quarters and stay in bed for as long as you tell me to, but please don’t make me stay here.” Tears welled up in your eyes and you tried to blink them away.

Leonard sighed heavily. “I can’t let you go back to your quarters on your own, you know that.”

You bit your bottom lip and tried to prevent the tears from falling as you stayed firm. “Then come with me.” Your voice had been nothing more than a whisper.

Leonard raised his eyebrow, then pursed his lips as he turned over your request in his mind. Picking up his tricorder from the nightstand, he scanned you quickly as you frowned at him.  
“All right,” he said after a long while. You looked at him in disbelief, unsure if you heard him correctly.

“But for now, I want you back in your bed here until I have everything prepared in your quarters.”

The prospect of leaving Medbay made you obey without any more fight, and when Leonard came to discharge you half an hour later, most of the tension had left your body and you greeted him with a smile. 

You’d remembered the entire reason you went on that away mission was to acquire a specific plant to cure a rash that had been spreading on the ship, and you also remembered how stressed Leonard was about it. You hoped he wouldn’t be too disappointed that you failed.

“Someone’s looking more cheerful,” he greeted you as he took up a handful of medical supplies off your nightstand and into a small travel bag.

“Len,” you ventured tentatively. “I wasn’t able to get the plants you needed...will the crewmembers infected with the rash be alright?”

He looked over at you, dropping the last of the supplies into the bag as he gave you a reassuring smile. “They’re fine, darlin’. When I wasn’t trying to hail you, I was workin’ on a solution to it in the lab. We found a viable replacement that can be used in the meantime until we meet up with one of the other ships in the area that happen to have a more powerful antidote on board.”

You nodded as you slumped back in bed, relieved. “I’m glad.”

He reached over, giving your hand a squeeze before pulling the covers away. “Alright, let’s get you outta here.”

After a bit of convincing, he made you sit in one of the hover-chairs covered with a blanket and wheeled you out of Medbay to your immense relief. You were so relaxed that you didn’t pay any attention to where Leonard was taking you, letting your eyes flutter closed as you leaned back in the chair. Only when he stopped in front of his quarters did you tilt your head back and look at him questioningly.

“These aren't my quarters, “ you stated simply.

“No, they are not.” Leonard typed in his access code and the door opened for him. “But if I’m gonna watch over you, I figured it’d be best if you stayed with me for a little while.”

He wheeled you into his room, the place you had ached to be while you’d been stranded. The lights were low and it smelled like coffee and cinnamon. You saw a lit candle on the kitchen counter and a few medical supplies, along with a hefty pile of blankets next to the couch where you assumed you’d be staying. But he wheeled you past the living room and into his bedroom, where even more blankets were piled.

“Oh, Len. I can’t take your bed from you.” Your heart skipped at how generous he was being just to make sure you were at ease.

“Who says you’re taking it from me?” He smirked as he pulled back the covers and stood in front of you. Before you knew what he was doing, he stooped over and grabbed you up from the hover chair.

“Woah, Leonard!” You exclaimed in surprise as he swung you over the bed and placed you among the bedsheets. They were warm and soft, smelling exactly like him. You couldn’t imagine a more comforting place in all the universe.  
He began to tuck the covers around you loosely, propping your head up a bit with some thick pillows.

You patted the mattress next to you, giving him your best puppy-dog look. “Stay with me?”

He rolled his eyes lightly, tucking in the last of the blankets before rounding the bed and sliding underneath the covers next to you. You sighed in contentment and snuggled over as close as you could manage, his warm body blissfully pleasant against your cool skin.

He wrapped his arms over you, pulling you even closer to him and you sighed softly, your head settling just under his chin as your arms rested on his chest.

You both laid there silently for a while, just enjoying each other’s presence. You were about to fall asleep when you heard him utter something into your hair.

“I thought I lost you.”

Your breath hitched, and you pressed your palms to his chest as you wriggled in even more.  
“Well, it turns out.....I’m not so easy to lose.”

He huffed, not satisfied with your answer. “Just promise me that next time you won’t go beamin’ yourself down on a planet alone. Even if a certain captain tells you to against his better judgment.”

You giggled a bit, slowly grazing one hand up and down his arm. You were about to close your eyes but he spoke again.

“I’m serious, Y/N. You promise me here and now.”

You tilted your head up to him and his hand found your cheek, pushing the hair away from your face as he tenderly stroked your skin, careful not to disturb the small bandage just above your ear.

“I promise.”

He kissed you then, and you delighted in the warmth of his lips. You knew there was nowhere else you would rather be than here, wrapped in his embrace, on a ship hurtling through space destined for another adventure.

END 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

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